The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1887-12-29
} WHOLESOME RECREATION.
Discourse by DR.. Talmaga in the Brook
lyn Tabernacle.

ating Mental and Physical Energies
Music Source of Rlimitable Recreation
and Amusement
BROOKLYN, Dec. 1S.-At the Tabernacle
this morning the whole congregation sang
the hymn beginning:
The hill of Zion yields
thousand sacred sweets
Before we reach the heavenly fields
Or walk the golden streets.
The Rev. 4. De Witt Talmage, d. D.,
preached on "Recreations Good and Bad,
taking two texts: 1 Cor. vii, 81: "They
that use this world, as not abusing it,"
and Judges xvi, 25: "And il came to pass,
when their hearts were merry, that they
said, Call for Samson, that he may make
us sport And they called for Samson out
of the prison house; and he made them
sport" DR.. Talmage said:
We are entering the gayest season Of
the year. The winter opens before us the
gates of thousand amusements, some Of
them good and some bad. One of my
texts will show you that amusements may
be destructive, my other text will show you
that amusements may be under the divine
blessing and direction.
There were 5000 people assembled in
the temple of Dagon. They had come to
make sport of eyeless Samson. They
were all ready for the entertainment. They
began to clap and pound, impatient for
the amusement to begin, and they cried,
Fetch him out! fetch him out" Yonder
/ see the blind old giant coming, led by
the hand of q child into the very midst OF
the temple. At his first appearance there
goes up shout of laughter and derision.
The blind old giant pretends he is tired,
and wants to rest himself against the pill
lars of the house; so he says to the lad
who leads him, "Show me whore the main
pillars are." The lad does so. Then the
strong man puts his right hand on one
pillar and his left hand on another pillar,
and, with the mightiest push that mortal
Jver made, throws himself forward until
the whole house comes down in thunder
GUS crash, grinding the audience like
grapes in a wine press. Sand so it came
to pass, when their hearts were merry, that
they said, Call for Samson, that he may
make US sport. And they called for Sam
son out Of the prison house; and he made
them sport"
In other words There are amuseme nts
that are destructive, and bring down dis
aster and death upon the heads of those
who practice them. While they laugh and
chear, they die. The 5000 who perished
that day in GAIA are as nothing compared
with the tens of thousands who have been
destroyed by sinful amusements.
But the other text l have read implies
that there is q lawful use OF the world as
we'll as an unlawful abuse of it, and the
difference between the man Christian and
the man un Christian is, that in the former
case the man masters the world, while
in the latter case the world masters him.
For whom did God make this grand and
beautiful world? For whom this wonder
full expenditure of color, this gracefulness
of line, this mosaic Of the ground, this
fresco Of the sky, this glowing fruitage OF
orchard and vineyard, this full orchestra
of the tempest, in which the tree branches
flute, and the winds trumpet, and the
thunders drum, and all the splendors OF
earth and sky come clashing their Gym
balsP For whom did God spring the
arched bridge of colors resting upon but
tresses of broken storm clouds? FoI
whom did He gather the upholstery of fire
around the window of the setting sun? For
III men; but more especially for His own
dear children.
If you build large mansion, and spread
great feast after it to celebrate the COM
pletion of the structure, do you allow
strangers to come in and occupy the place
while you thrust your own children in the
kitchen or the barn or the fields? Oh, no.
You say: 81 am very glad 10 see strangers
in my mansion, but my own sons and
daughters shall have the first right there
Now God has built this grand mansion of a
world, and He has spread a glorious feast
in it; and while those who are strangers to
His grace may come in, | think that God
especially intends to give the advantage to
His own children, those who are the sons
and daughters Of the Lord Almighty, those
who through grace can look up and saw,
"Abba, Father" You cannot make me be.
ieve that God gives more advantage to the
world than He gives to the church bought
by His own blood. If, therefore, people OF
the world have looked with dolorous SYM
pathy upon those who make profession OF
religion, and have said, Those new con-
verts are going down into privation and
into hardship. Why did not they tarry a
little longer in the world, and have some Of
its euioyments and amusements and recre-
ations2" l say to such men of the world,
" You are greatly Mistaken" aud before
get through will show thet those people
who stay out of the kingdom OF God have
the hardships and self deniAls, while those
who come in have the joys and the salts
faction.
This morning, in the name OF the King
of Heaven and earth, / sSrve a writ of
sjectment on 81 the sinful and polluted
who have squatted on the domain of
earthly pleasure as though it BELONGED to
hem, while [ claim, in behalf of the good
ind the pure and the true, the eternal in
which God has given them
Hitherto, Christian philanthropists, cler-
cal and lay, have busted themselves chiefly
n denouncing sinful recreations; but feel |
We have no right to stand before men and
women in whose hearts there is a desire
or recreation amounting to positive neces-
lty, denouncing this and that and the |
'ther thing, when we do not propose to !
i've them something better. God helping !
no this morning, and with reference to my !
asst account, | shall enter upon sphere |
lot usual in sermoni2ing, but subeo' |
Which think ought to be presented at th. |
ime. propose now to lay before YOU |
ONE Of the recreations which are not only !
innocent, but positively helpful and ad- |
antageous.
In the first place, 1 commend. among in
ool reOFedtlous, muslc1 vocal ana ln5tru-
Mental. Among the first things created
Tas the bird, SO that the earth might have |
nusic at the start. This world, which be-
an with so sweet a serenade, is finally to
e demolished amidst the ringing blast of
he archangels trumpet, so that as there
'as music at the start there shall be
lusic at the close. While this heavenly
rt has often been dragged into the uses of
nperstition and dissipation, we all know it
lay be the means Of high moral culture.
n, 1t is a grand thing to have our chill
rem brought up amidst the sound of cul-
irsd voices and amidst the melody OF
lusical Instruments, There is in this art
n lindescribable fascination for the house,
old. Let all those families who have the
leans to afford 1t, have flute or harp, or
tano or organ. AS soon as the hand is
rge enough to compass the keys, teach it
nW tn T1iQIr mt tha t,,alOdv ak olt c,,,